


Wilting Butterflies

by loveandwar007



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Definitely implied Starco, Gen, I needed to get out feelings after The Battle For Mewni, Mother-Daughter Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-21
Updated: 2017-07-21
Packaged: 2018-12-05 04:30:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11570349
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loveandwar007/pseuds/loveandwar007
Summary: The battle is won, but the war is far from over as the fear of loss and heartbreak still consumes Mewni and Earth's triumphant warriors.





	Wilting Butterflies

**Author's Note:**

  * For [radiowrittenheart](https://archiveofourown.org/users/radiowrittenheart/gifts), [selenicsoulmates](https://archiveofourown.org/users/selenicsoulmates/gifts).



In an empty corridor in one of Butterfly Castle’s tallest towers, a loud obnoxious yawn echoed off the walls. Aside from a couple of guards patrolling the hall near her bedroom, the East Wing was almost deserted. Everyone was still down in the ballroom, reveling in celebration of the victory over Toffee. Champagne bottles were still popping, the record player was still blaring its pulsing beat, and no one showed any sign of leaving the dance floor anytime soon.

Star hadn’t been able to spend more than two minutes talking to a single person, all of Mewni and beyond wanted to see, hug and shake hands with their heroic princess. She showed off her new wand like it was an engagement ring, and her mother had made a rather beautiful speech commending her bravery and sacrifice. Yet in the end, Star was still just a girl who had done what she needed to. And that girl was exhausted.

“Thanks for not having me make the long walk up here by myself,” Star said to Marco, who kept the pace beside her. “As sick as I am of talking to people -- see, hear that? My voice is practically gone,” she chuckled, “I’m cool with talking to you.”

“No problem,” Marco replied simply. In truth, there was nothing he wanted more right now than to be in Star’s presence, feeling the light and joy radiating from her. He was terrified he would go to sleep tonight and wake up in that horrible crater among the West Wing’s debris, Queen Moon still sobbing over the loss of her daughter, and Marco struggling to comprehend that his best friend was never coming back -- mere hours after he finally found her again.

That was the kicker: Reuniting with her safe and sound, only to have her snatched away for good. He had never felt a pain like that before in his life, like his literal soul was crumbling inside him. His fists took over all reason, his grief-filled rage consumed his heart and he just _punched._ He punched to kill, he was ready to avenge her to no avail. What on Earth -- or Mewni -- had compelled him to attempt to murder Toffee? He hadn’t stopped thinking about it since it happened.

“You okay?” Star asked, trying to catch his eyes, but they remained misted over.

“Yeah, I think so.” Marco blinked rapidly, turning to give her a smile. “Just...a lot happened over the past couple days, ya know?”

“You don’t have to remind _me,”_ she laughed lightly, yet noticing that the smile never quite reached Marco’s deep brown eyes. Instinctively, she reached for his hand to hold it while they walked together, then thought better of it and fiddled with the hem of her hot pink party dress instead.

It was going to come up sooner or later. The big declaration she had made to him before leaving Earth with her mother. And she hoped with everything inside her that it would not come up now. Emotions were running too high, and the two of them would be bound to say things they didn’t really mean. Star didn’t want Marco to say something that would either be a lie in the heat of the moment, or would break her heart beyond repair.

Thankfully, they made it to her room without broaching the subject. The guards on either side gave them an odd look, and Star rolled her eyes. “Relax, he’s not going in with me.”

Marco’s eyes widened, sputtering nonsense for a minute, and Star stifled a laugh. He was so cute when he got flustered, and looked even more cute in that white royal tunic, shoulder tassels and cape. He really looked like a prince from a storybook, and it was enough to make her heart flutter.

“Well um, guess you’re heading back home then?” she said, tucking a lock of hair nervously behind her ear.

“Yeah, Mom and Dad are gonna wanna hear about everything. And Jackie’s--” His mouth clamped shut, averting his eyes to the suit of armor across the hall as his cheeks grew hot. “Sorry, I-I’m sorry--”

“Wha--no, Marco, what’re you apologizing for?” Star insisted, holding him by the shoulders. “She’s probably so worried about you. You have to go back to her.” It felt like with every word she spoke, the crack in her heart grew deeper, but she didn’t dare let it show. “It’s okay Marco, really.”

“Is it?” he asked, glancing at her out the corner of his eye. Luckily the guards did their job and continued to stare straight ahead, acting like the awkward levels _weren’t_ suffocating everyone in the hallway.

“It is,” the princess nodded. “It’s my problem, Marco. Not yours.”

 _Is it?_ He wanted to repeat it, but remained silent. From day one, he felt as if her problems were also his. Why else had he followed her here? Why had he been compelled to stay and fight for a kingdom that was not his?

Because it was hers. Because it was important to her, and so it was important to him.

“I don’t know why you stayed here, Marco, but I’m really glad you did,” Star said rather bashfully, and Marco’s heart leapt. She looked awfully adorable when she was shy. “Everything you did for Dad, and Mom said you were kinda...there for her, too. You--you didn’t have to do all that.”

“Everybody keeps telling me that, but--I dunno, I feel like I did. Have to stay, I mean. Stay and fight.” He swallowed as a lump began to form in his throat, “And…and I’m really glad you…”

A gasp escaped Star as Marco launched forward, pulling her close as she instantly relaxed in his warm familiar arms. Bringing her own arms around his back, they stayed that way for a good long time, with no Sugar Seeds to break the mood. They were both trembling slightly with the lingering fear of everything that had transpired and gripped each other tighter in comfort. Ruberiot would be having a field day if he could see them now.

“You’re here,” Marco finished at last in a whisper, his nose buried in her hair. “You’re still here. Just--please, _please_ don’t do that again. Don’t leave me.”

Star knew he wasn’t talking about her leaving Earth, and she rubbed his back. “I won’t. I’m right here, just like you said. I’m not going anywhere.”

Neither of them wanted to pull apart, but the night was getting later and Marco had a curfew. And when they separated, it was Marco who took her hand and hung on for a couple moments.

“See ya soon, Star.”

“Yeah…see ya soon.” Their fingers trailing away from each other, she looked back at him as she pushed the door to her room open, letting her eyes linger on his until she closed it between them.

Marco let out a long sigh as he walked away, pulling his dimensional scissors out from under his cape. He had a lot of thinking to do.

 

* * *

 

For someone who had triumphantly defeated her mother’s archenemy and one of Mewni’s greatest threats, Star sure didn’t think tears were going to grace her cheeks any time soon. But there they were, streaming messily and dripping all over her chest and lap as she sat on her bed, bunching the skirt of her nightgown up in her hands.

She hated this. She wanted so badly for things between her and Marco to go back to being simple. But just like when she came face-to-face with Toffee, before very real threats had targeted her kingdom and family, things were never going to be simple again.

Maybe things never were easy with Marco. Maybe they had always been like this, and she’d just never seen it. She didn’t know. But what she did know was that ignoring it all and running away was not an option anymore, on any front. Her people were looking to her now, taking her seriously as their heir. And she couldn’t let them down. It was just like her mother had told her about being future queen: Her own happiness didn’t matter.

Star had leaned back against her pillows, sniffling into the clean linens and ready to cry herself to sleep until she heard a soft knock at the door. For half a second, she dared to believe it was Marco, but the voice that followed was definitely not his.

“Star? Are you still awake?”

“Mom?” she said thickly, sitting up and scrubbing her face dry. “Uh yeah, come on in.” The door opened once more and Moon’s powdered face, glittering gown and fancy updo appeared, the clattering of her heels echoing in the stillness.

“I know you must be very tired, but I just wanted to see if--” She stopped, looking at Star’s red splotchy face. “Darling, are you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m good. I’m just thinkin’ about…everything.” It wasn’t a lie, so she didn’t feel that guilty when her mother approached and sat down on the bed, her features laced with sympathy.

“It’s been a lot for all of us to take in,” the queen sighed out, arranging her skirt so she could sit comfortably and taking her daughter’s hands in hers. “I can’t imagine how frightened you must have felt, and what you must still be feeling.”

“It was pretty scary,” Star said after clearing her throat, staring down at their clasped hands. “Toffee tried to drown me in my own magic. I...I think I _died,_ Mom. And then I...saved myself? I dunno, it’s all kinda a blur now.” She heard a sniffle and looked up to see tears in Moon’s mascara-laced eyes. “Oh--oh Mom no, I’m sorry! That was, like, the last thing you needed to hear, all that me dying stuff--”

“My Star,” Moon whispered, cupping her face in her gloved hands and wiping at the dried tear tracks on her hearts. “My baby, my dear sweet girl…”

“It’s okay Mom, don’t cry,” Star soothed softly. Just like when she was a little girl, she got up onto her knees and latched her arms around Moon’s neck. But that only caused the queen to break down further, cradling her only child as tight as she could while mascara-soiled tears soaked into Star’s hair.

“Toffee said you were gone.”

“I know. Marco told me.” Star’s lips trembled, “I’m sorry, Mommy. I didn’t wanna do that to you, but I had no choice.”

“I’m not blaming you,” Moon clarified, pulling back to look into her daughter’s wide childlike eyes, as if to assure herself that they were still full of life, and she was still truly here in her arms. “I could never have done what you did, especially not so young. I admire you, Star, I made that clear tonight. But…to hear the words that your child is dead. That the little bundle you nurtured and raised and watched grow up has perished, and that a part of you is never going to be whole again…”

“I’m here, Mom,” Star whispered in the same way she had to Marco earlier, “I’m alive. You don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

“No Star, I do. I’ve been worrying about that every day from the moment you were born.” Moon swallowed, dabbing at her face with her gloves. “You don’t understand it now, but when you have a child of your own, the fear of outliving them consumes you and doesn’t let go.”

All of a sudden, her Marco problems sounded so stupid and petty compared to this, and Star couldn’t think of a single thing to say to console her mother. So she just leaned against her shoulder and let Moon rock her like she was a baby again. It was the safest Star had felt in days, like nothing could hurt her in her mother’s embrace, not even the sting of being in love and heartbreak.

“I’m sorry,” Star mumbled against her chest. “I’m sorry I get so mad and yell at you. It’s not that I don’t wanna listen to your advice about being a good queen, I just get scared. I’m not ready, and--” Her eyes pooled with tears now as well, “What if something happens and you die just like Grandma did? There’s no way I’m gonna be able to take your place, I-I can’t do any of this without you. I…need you, Mommy.”

Moon kissed her forehead as they continued to cry together, all of the emotions of the past couple of weeks flowing out of them in waves. Star didn’t need to know about the dark purple veins creeping up Moon’s arms underneath her long gloves, or what the consequences of her deal with Eclipsa could ultimately lead to. Neither of them needed to be frightened any more than they already were tonight.

What they needed was each other.

“Star,” her mother whispered. “I know I haven’t always been there for you. And some days I can be a downright horrible mother when you do something reckless, or the pressures of being Queen get to me. But I want that to change. Nearly losing you…well, it put a lot of things into perspective.” She brushed frizzed strands of gold hair back from Star’s face, “You will always be my daughter first and a princess second. It’s time that I start showing you how deeply I believe that.”

“So, you wanna like…bond?” Star asked, raising her eyebrows. “Do some mother-daughter stuff together? Ooh, maybe we could train in combat! And you can show me all your tips to being a cool warrior queen with no fear!”

“There’s no such thing as a warrior with no fear,” Moon stated. “In fact, fear is what has driven _this_ warrior queen since she was a child. Fear of losing her mother, and her child.” She smiled gently, “But I would like to do that--erm--’mother-daughter stuff’ from time to time. I don’t want to let our fear of losing each other keep us distant.”

“Yeah, I feel the same way…”

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Moon asked when Star’s eyes began to well up again. Her thoughts had drifted to Marco once more: Back on Earth, back with Jackie, distant from her once again, physically and figuratively. It was like a huge piece of her was there with him, and it was killing her inside.

“Actually, I…I haven’t been alright.” She raised her eyes to meet her mother’s, “Remember what Ruberiot sang on Song Day? About me and Marco?”

“Are you saying there’s some truth to it?”

“That’s the whole problem. _Some_ truth.” She wiped her eyes dry yet again with the heels of her hands. “But that sounds so dumb compared to death and defeating Toffee, right?”

“Not at all,” the queen shook her head. “You’re still a teenager, Star, magical princess or not. And I was one once, too.” She gave her one last kiss on top of her head as she tucked the blankets in around her. “Perhaps we could have tea tomorrow and talk about it then?”

“Sure, I’d like that,” Star murmured as her eyes fell closed. “Thanks, Mom.”

“I love you, Star,” Moon breathed, “Believe me when I say I love you very, _very_ much.”

“I love you too, Mom. Can’t wait to Narwhal Blast with you.”

Her mother let a chuckle escape her as she drifted towards the door, making sure Star was snuggled down contentedly under the covers before closing it behind her.

Hurrying around the corner away from the watchful guards’ eyes, Moon panted heavily as she yanked her gloves from her arms. Even in the dim evening light, the inky blackness of Eclipsa’s binding contract stood out on her porcelain skin, absorbing her veins, her magic, and ultimately, her life force.

_What are you, Queen Eclipsa?_

Blackened hands shaking, she curled them into fists as terror gripped her heart once more. The contract was complete. A contract between two queens, stronger than any crystal. She knew what that meant for the Queen of Darkness. But what did it mean for Moon the Undaunted?

 _Don’t do this,_ she pleaded as if Eclipsa could hear her. _Don’t make me do this to Star…_

 _Do_ **_not_ ** _make her suffer as I did._

 

**Author's Note:**

> Real quick thing I had to get out post-Battle For Mewni (who else cried as hard as I did watching it?)
> 
> For Reagan and Maggie, 'cause you guys inspire me.
> 
> Kudos are great, but comments are better :)


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